ME: Trapt
by Seadragon
Summary: Hogwarts 5th Years and up are off to a Muggle Camp. A Death Eater attack finds Lily and James lost in the woods, with no way to get back, and an army searching for them. Some people will stop at nothing to get what they want. Voldemort is no exception.
1. Immature

"Yes!"  
  
"No!"  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Don't you ever give up?"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Don't you ever get tired of these stupid arguments we have?"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Would you stop saying that?!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"ARGH!"  
  
James smiled. "I WIN!"  
  
"NO! I did!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"AHHH!" Lily screamed before storming away.  
  
James smirked.  
  
"AHHHH!"  
  
"What now?!" He sighed and walked over to the Gryffindor Notice Board, the center of the commotion.  
  
"AHHHHHH!"  
  
"Jeez James, can you not close your mouth for a second?!" Remus groaned.  
  
"AHHHHHHHH!"  
  
"You think maybe we should find out what's wrong?" Sirius asked. "Nah-"  
  
"AHHHHH!!!"  
  
"You know what, I think that's the first time Lily and James agreed on something." Sirius said.  
  
"Maybe we should find out what's wrong?" Peter said, smirking. "I mean it's got to be pretty bad if he's agreeing with Lily!"  
  
"Yah, think you're right Wormtail." Sirius smiled.  
  
"Hey James!" Remus shouted.  
  
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
"James! Lily! Shut up for a second!" Peter shouted. "Or I'll force feed you both love potions!"  
  
That shut them both up. They glared at Peter until Remus asked. "What are you two screaming about?!"  
  
Unable to speak, James pointed at a notice with a bolded title. Remus screamed.  
  
"AHHHHH!"  
  
"Now who needs to shut up Moony?" James asked, a smirk stuck on his face.  
  
5th Years And Up  
  
You are required to take part in a month long muggle camp. Since this is a muggle camp and there will be muggles, you must leave your wands behind.  
And yes James Potter, no wandless magic for you either.  
  
("Damn!" James whispered. The rest of the people, including his fellow marauders, gave him funny looks.)  
  
Everyone from the same year in the same house will be required to share a  
cabin. See the cabin lists below if you are unsure. Also, James, you do  
HAVE to share a cabin with Miss Evans.  
  
("Damn!" He whispered again.)  
  
Cabin Lists  
  
Cabin 1- Fifth Years  
  
Emma Beataue  
  
Hilary Jones  
  
Courtney Owens  
  
Sarah Deal  
  
Sam Johnson  
  
Colin Peters  
  
Fred Peters  
  
Andy Farhath  
  
Cabin 13- Sixth Years  
  
(Yes Messrs Potter and Black, I am well aware I placed you in Cabin 13, the  
other professors told me it was asking for trouble.)  
  
Lily Evans  
  
May Dawson  
  
Elizabeth Harmon  
  
Jane Litton  
  
James Potter  
  
Sirius Black  
  
Remus Lupin  
  
Peter Pettigrew  
  
(No James, I will not consider moving you, so don't even ask.)  
  
("Damn!" James whispered once again.)  
Cabin 6- Seventh Years  
  
(No Mr. Potter, you are not going to be allowed to sleep here instead. Or  
with the fifth years, we wouldn't want you to corrupt them would we?)  
  
(James could swear the paper was making fun of him.)  
  
Amy Park  
  
Lauren Andrews  
  
Kate Bell  
  
Andrea Jackson  
  
Shane Adams  
  
Adam Fields  
  
George Creevy  
  
Andrew Jordan  
  
(James, I am not moving you, you may not stay behind, and you may not jump  
off the astronomy tower. You will share a cabin with Miss Evans and not  
kill her! Understand?)  
  
Professor Dumbledore  
  
(P.S.- James, you may not burn your cabin to the ground either!)  
  
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" James screamed again. "How did he know all my plans to escape?!"  
  
"Tough luck mate." Sirius said, grinning.  
  
"Least you'll have use there too. And who are those other two girls? We know May, but who are Elizabeth Harmon and Jane Litton?" Peter asked, no trace of a smile on his face.  
  
"Those are Lily and May's roommates Wormtail. From what I've heard, they don't like them too much. Apparently they are, let's see, more fit for Slytherin or Hufflepuff? "Hey Moony, how can you be fit for Slytherin or Hufflepuff? They are almost the exact opposite!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Well, they are really quiet and shy, but when they do talk they are nothing less then evil, repulsive, despicable, disgusting freaks." May said, grinning.  
  
"Oh, that makes sense then. Can you tell Moony doesn't like them James? Its almost as secret as the fact that you and Lily hate each other!" Sirius said.  
  
"Hey what are those nicknames you use?" Lily asked. "I mean you always call Remus Moony, Peter Wormtail, and Potter Prongs. Why?"  
  
"AHHHHHHH!"  
  
"Oh get over it already Potter!" Lily snapped.  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Well? What are they for?"  
  
James looked surprised, she gave up too easily.  
  
Sirius shifted uncomfortably. "Er, nothing really. Just something we made up.  
  
"I know you're lying Black." May stated.  
  
"Yeah, we will find out. you realize?" Lily said.  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"YES!"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"POTTER! YOU ARE SO IMMATURE!" Lily screamed. "Don't you ever get tired of acting like a two-year-old?"  
  
"Actually, no. And that's the nicest thing you have said to me all day!" 


	2. Innocent

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"  
  
"As I was saying, before Mr. Potter so rudely interrupted, these are the bus seats, you may not change where you are sitting, or move around. And no, Mr. Potter, you may not make the bus explode!" Professor McGonagall snapped.  
  
James lowered his hand, surprised. But the silence didn't last long.  
  
"Alright, since there will be muggles on the bus, watch what you say, even more so because your seat partner will be a muggle."  
  
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"  
  
"Potter! Black! Lupin! Pettigrew! KINDLY SHUT YOUR MOUTHS!"  
  
They gulped and shut up.  
  
"Alright, everyone I will hand out copies of the seating arrangements."  
  
"This sucks Sirius!" James whispered.  
  
"I know, god, we have to sit with muggles?! Malfoy is going to have a fit!"  
  
James and Sirius burst out with laughter at the look on Malfoy's face when he was told he would have to sit with a muggle. "I bet he curses his partner before we even set foot on the bus!" James said, struggling not to laugh. Unfortunately, he failed.  
  
"POTTER! BLACK!" McGonagall roared.  
  
FRONT  
  
EVANS | Smith (F) HARMON | Lewis (F)  
  
POTTER | Winset (M) LUPIN | Marsh (M)  
  
BLACK | Tucker (M) PETTIGREW | Dray (M)  
  
LITTON | Evert (F) DAWSON | Hamson (F)  
  
BEATAUE | Wilson (F) JONES | Macintosh (F)  
  
OWENS | Pitts (F) DEAL | Campbell (F)  
  
JOHNSON | Donaldson (M) PETERS | Elliott (M)  
  
FARHATH | Camern (M) PETERS | Kerr (M)  
  
PARK | Flynn (F) ANDREWS | Hood (F)  
  
ADAMS | Watson (M) JORDAN | Kilkenny (M)  
  
FIELDS | McDoughal (M) JACKSON | Pyke (F)  
  
BELL | Lambert (F) CREEVY | McLain (M)  
  
BACK  
  
"As you may have noticed, we placed the 6th years at the front of the bus. We need the bus driver to keep and eye on. certain individuals."  
  
James grinned.  
  
"Remember, no talk of magic at all! Your wands will be left behind. And Potter, no wandless magic."  
  
James frowned. "Damn." He whispered.  
  
"Also, the bus driver, pour unfortunate soul, has been warned about you four!" McGonagall glared at James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter, who smiled innocently back.  
  
"And Mr Potter, no hexing Miss Evans. You know, when you four smile like that, it scares me." They continued to smile.  
  
The bell rang. James, Sirius, Remus and Peter were half way to the door when McGonagall snapped. "WAIT!"  
  
"You leave tomorrow, therefore all of you are excused from your next class- " She was interrupted by cheers from the Marauders. "To go pack-" The cheers stopped abruptly.  
  
"Your head of house will be by later to collect all wands. And Potter, Black, don't try chaining yourselves together!" 


	3. Inevitable

"Hey! You! Four eyes! You're in my seat!" A brown haired boy who distinctively reminded James of Snape shouted at him.  
  
James blinked. What was the kid's name again? Oh right. "Actually Winset, we have to share seats." He smirked at the bigger boy.  
  
"I don't want to share a seat with a freak!" He screamed. Oh yeah definitely Snape.  
  
"Hey! Don't you know that's James Potter you're yelling at?!" Some fifth year James didn't even know yelled.  
  
"Apparently not," Sirius said, indicating for James to stand, which he did. "The Famous James Potter! Marauder, and Team Captain" He nodded to James, who bowed comically. All the students from Hogwarts, with exception of Lily, May, Harmon, and Litton, cheered loudly.  
  
James gave the boy a cocky grin. "Do you want the window seat? Or can I sit back down?"  
  
With a snarl Winset shoved James, hard. Not expecting an attack, and having the disadvantage of being slender and lightweight, he flew through the air and hit the back of the bus.  
  
Gasping slightly and holding one hand to a bleeding cut on his forehead, James stood.  
  
Sirius was white with fury. "James!" He started for Winset, quite prepared to rip him limb from limb.  
  
"No Sirius, stay out of it." James snapped, and the other boy laughed.  
  
"Crying for your friends to help? What's next? Mummy and Daddy?" He taunted.  
  
James paled. "They're, they're dead."  
  
"Really? How'd it happen? Was it an act of mercy on the world? To have a son like you, they must have been-"  
  
It was Winset's turn to fly through the air, though James never laid a finger on him. He hit the front of the bus with a sickening thud.  
  
James was advancing on him. A sickly ball of black light escaped from him and encased the other boy. He was levitated slowly into the air. The air went very cold and the boy was turning a frightening white.  
  
"James! James! Stop, please stop!" Lily pleaded, forcing her way past Smith. She tugged on his arm to no avail. He pushed her off and walked right up to the black orb.  
  
"They were murdered." He said shakily. He could see Sirius, Remus, and Peter shaking.  
  
James backed up and focused on the black sphere and the boy inside it. The air seemed stale and Winset was crying helplessly.  
  
Whatever would have happened next is anyone's guess. Professor chose that moment to momentarily board the bus and remind them to behave.  
  
Her face went white when she saw James and Winset. "Potter!" She took a shaky breath and shook her head, unable to believe what she saw. "Let him down." She croaked.  
  
He obliged and Winset backed as far away from James as he could. "You are a freak! I was right." James glared at him coldly. The other boy opened his mouth but nothing came out.  
  
"How did you do that Potter?" She asked him in a whisper. "You must see Dumbledore the instant you get back!" She looked frightened.  
  
Lily shoved past Smith, who smirked at her. "Scared for your boyfriend?" She asked nastily.  
  
"He's not my boyfriend! He's not even my friend!" Lily snapped.  
  
"James, please, sit down." McGonagall looked terrified. As shaken and angry as he was, James still tried to lighten the mood with a joke.  
  
"Why so scared Minnie?" Sirius snickered, Lily looked scandalized. McGonagall only gave a faint smile and pointed to the seat. James sighed and sat down, sliding over to the window.  
  
"Thank you Mr. Potter."  
  
James nodded. "Hey Winset, are you going to sit down? I don't bite." He paused for a second and pretended to think. "Oh wait! Yes I do! Not poisonous though." He grinned and nodded to Remus, who snickered.  
  
"Oh no!" There is no way I'm sitting with him!" Winset protested, going even whiter.  
  
"Don't be foolish!" McGonagall snapped. "Of course you're sitting with him. You heard him, he isn't poisonous!" She glared at Winset who shut his mouth and sat down as far from James as he could.  
  
"Nice one James!" Sirius whispered. James grinned.  
  
"Thanks!" Sirius gave him a high five, and Tucker, Sirius's seat partner, just looked terrified.  
  
"Alright I expect all my students to behave!" Professor McGonagall looked at Peter, Remus, Sirius, and James in turn, who once again, smiled innocently.  
  
"Remember the rules! And for once, please don't break them!" McGonagall added. "And try to have fun. But not to much!" The Marauders grinned at each other.  
  
"And you four! Try to act your age!"  
  
"Er, professor. What's my age again?" James asked innocently. She groaned and departed the bus, trying to maintain some dignity. 


	4. Intolerable

"Everybody off! Especially you four!" The bus driver yelled.  
  
The Marauders grinned; glad to know they had succeeded in annoying the bus driver. A good long rendition of '1000 bottles of Butterbeer on the wall' could do that to a person.  
  
They joined the shouting crowd in the parking lot. A hassled looking muggle was standing on a cardboard box with a cone to his mouth.  
  
"What the hell?" James whispered to himself, which Lily unfortunately heard.  
  
"It's a megaphone you moron." She whispered back.  
  
"Alright children!" The man yelled. All the kids from magical homes fell silent and were watching the man with amazement. The muggleborns were quiet after a minute or so, but the other kids, the muggles, just went on talking.  
  
"QUIET!" He yelled. Sirius jumped, and James, Remus, and Peter broke out into laughter. The other students shut up after the man's murderous look, but the Marauders went on laughing. Especially after James stuck a sign on Lily's back that read  
  
"POINT and HEX"  
  
All the Hogwarts students were trying to stifle giggles. Lily looked around for a minute before figuring it all out. May whispering it in her ear helped a bit.  
  
"POTTER!"  
  
"Uh oh, that's my cue to exit!" And James ran. The students from Hogwarts were used to this, it was nothing new. The muggles looked bewildered.  
  
"Oi! James!" Sirius yelled. "I think you're getting slow, last time you were miles ahead!" The other students nodded.  
  
"HALT!" That was the director again. James skidded to a stop with surprise. No one had ever stopped him and Lily from fighting before. People had tried, coming away worse for the wear. Not to say Sirius and May hadn't tried.  
  
James didn't want to remember what they had done last. It wasn't all that original, actually, the teachers had tried the exact same thing just three weeks before Sirius and May.  
  
It had resulted in James blasting the door open. Being locked in a room with Lily was not his idea of a good time. AND it had happened twice in one month!  
  
He had the feeling Sirius, May, and the professors were working together. It wasn't a comforting thought, rather disturbing in fact.  
  
James shook his head to get back to the present. Lily was standing behind him, looking just as surprised.  
  
"Now it's time for you to go to your cabins. Cabins One through Twelve are to the left. Fourteen through Twenty-five straight ahead. And Cabin Thirteen is to the right." The director yelled into his megaphone and pointed in each direction.  
  
A path was in front of the group, right behind the director. There were three forks and a signpost in the middle. One arrow pointing to the left said: 1-12. The arrow straight ahead said: 14-25. And the one pointing down the right path said 13.  
  
"Oh great." Lily whispered to May. "Now there will be no witnesses when they kill us!"  
  
"Who do u mean? The Marauders? Or Litton and Harmon?" May whispered back.  
  
"You know who I mean!" Lily paused. Actually it was pretty tough. "You're right, it's a close call. But you know I meant the Marauders."  
  
May frowned. "Sirius is sweet! And when are you and James going to stop fooling around and admit you're perfect for each other?!"  
  
Lily froze. "What the hell?!" She looked confused and horrified. "Wait, this is coming from the girl who 'accidentally' locked me and James into a classroom together. Is that why you did it?! And the same with Sirius and the professors?!"  
  
"What?! What did the teachers-?" She stopped at the murderous look on Lily's face. "Maybe later." She gave Lily a weak smile, which didn't seem to help.  
  
"You did that because you wanted to get James and me together?! I can't believe you! I suppose that's what the professors wanted too! May opened her mouth. "NO! I'm not telling you! But I will tell you that I refused to speak to any of the professors for a week!" May closed her mouth and frowned, she would have to work on that later.  
  
Up ahead the director was sending the students to get their luggage. Soon everyone had a heavy suitcase in one hand and regret in the other.  
  
"Alright! Everyone line up by cabin! From 1 to 25!" There were a couple of moments of confusion as people got organized. Once everyone was in line, the director went to each group and separated them into pairs.  
  
When he came to group 13 he frowned. "Cabin Thirteen?" When James nodded he went on. :I've been given special instructions from your principal. It says here not to put any of the boys together, the results would be disastrous." The Marauders frowned. "He also said to make sure Lily and James don't kill each other. Whatever that means." He grabbed Peter by the arm and moved him next to Jane. "You will be with blondie. You with the odd colored hair." He grabbed Remus.  
  
"Golden brown."  
  
"Whatever, you're with the brunette," He pulled Elizabeth forward, who scowled at him. "You, and. You." The director shoved Sirius and May together, both of whom grinned. James and Lily looked horrified as soon as they realized what was going to happen. "You with the black hair, you and the red head are together." He pushed Lily, who stumbled, at James. James grabbed her and held her up until he realized what he was doing and dropped her. Lily scowled at him.  
  
"But!"  
  
"No! Wait! You can't do this!"  
  
Lily and James protested loudly. The director was already walking off to pair up 14. James and Lily gave each other disgusted looks and Sirius and May smiled knowingly.  
  
"I was right about you lot!" Lily shrieked, pointing an accusing finger at May and Sirius. "You do think that!" James, Elizabeth, and Jane looked bewildered.  
  
Remus and Peter grinned. James clued in and scowled. "And you two!" He yelled at Peter and Remus.  
  
Jane and Elizabeth were looking miserable and evil, an odd mix. Peter grimaced, this was going to be one hell of a time.  
  
All of a sudden James frowned. "What's a prince-a-pal?" Remus, Peter, and Sirius shrugged. Lily looked like she was ready to pitch James in a lake.  
  
"Principal! A principal is the same as a headmaster, he meant Dumbledore. I can't believe you're so stupid and clueless! How the hell have you gotten this far?!" She asked.  
  
James smiled at her, a rare occurrence that hadn't happened since he had first dumped his ice cream on her at Diagon Alley, before first year.  
  
"Simple! Teachers are open to bribes!" 


	5. Insufferable

"Ah, this is the life!" James Potter exclaimed as he flopped onto the top bunk of the beds he and Sirius were sharing.  
  
Remus Lupin nodded, scrambling to the other top bunk. Peter Pettigrew sighed, stuck on the bottom again, it seemed.  
  
"Hey, where are the girls?" Sirius asked, clambering onto the top bunk with James.  
  
"I think they went to beg mercy from McGonagall." Remus said.  
  
They sat quietly for a minute. Then all hell broke loose.  
  
"Sirius! Where's the bucket?" and "Remus, I can't find the whipped cream!" and "Alright! Who packed the string?!" along with other such things were yelled across the room, until.  
  
"There. All set." The Marauders nodded proudly. In minutes the  
  
spotless cabin had been transformed into a gigantic minefield. Buckets of water were over all the doors, whipped cream filled the girl's pillowcases, string was across both sides of the beds, ready to trip the bucket of chocolate sauce once the girls were lying down. The master piece: the piles of feathers from the girls' pillows on the top of the fan blades, the switch all ready to be flipped when the girls were out in the open.  
  
"Boys, I think we out did out did our selves. Now to wait." James said proudly looking at their handiwork. Sirius, Remus, and Peter nodded. Then they heard voices. "Quick! Look casual!" James hissed. Peter scrambled for his bunk and grabbed the chess set. They had about three minutes until the girls would come.  
  
Hurriedly, they set it up on the floor, and Peter and Remus randomly scattered the pieces around the board. James stood leaning against the wall next to the light switch behind them, and Sirius sat on a bed beside them.  
  
By the time the girls came in, Remus and Peter will involved in a loud argument about one of Remus's moves. The girls opened the door and stepped in, Lily first, followed by May, then Jane and Elizabeth. Lily just shook her head when she saw them and went to claim her bed. They didn't seem to notice it got very quiet as they all went to lie down on their beds.  
  
"Holy shit!" Lily yelled as she lay down and got covered in whipped cream and chocolate sauce. The other girls' screams followed soon after. They all got out of their bunks and glared menacingly at the boys.  
  
And then James flicked the switch.  
  
"POTTER!"  
  
~  
  
Sorry it's so short, but I wanted to end this chapter right there! Don't  
worry, there will be another, if I get five more reviews! Please?  
  
For people who were wondering, Lily and James hate each other.  
  
-Seadragon 


	6. Impossible

James awoke in the middle of the night, covered in a cold sweat. Something was going to happen.  
  
That was when an explosion rocked his bunk and Sirius, who had ended up on the top bunk with him, jerked awake. "Shh." James whispered, putting his finger to his lips. "We have to wake up the others." He said. Despite the loud explosion and the red glow of flames that could be seen behind the curtain, no one else had woken up. "I'll get Remus, Peter, and Lily. You wake up May, Jane, and Elizabeth." His voice was still a whisper, as if afraid whatever had caused the explosion might hear him and go for their cabin next.  
  
"James?" Sirius said hoarsely, obviously afraid.  
  
"Yes Sirius?"  
  
"I." He paused and changed his mind. "Never mind, doesn't matter." James gave him a curious look but proceeded in jumping lightly to the ground. He walked over to the bunk beds Remus and Peter were sharing and shook Peter's shoulder and clamped a hand over his mouth before he could cry out.  
  
"Peter, you have to wake up. There's an attack, quiet." He moved onto Remus, as Sirius quietly woke May up. "Moony, there's an attack, you have to get up, but be quiet."  
  
"Wha- where?!" May's voice was loud and clear, obviously Sirius had forgotten to cover her mouth before waking her up. James jumped at the noise and scolded himself for his jumpiness. But, who could blame him?  
  
"Lily. Lily. Wake up." He clamped his hand over her mouth and shook her. "We're under attack, you have to be quiet." To emphasize his point, he held a finger to his lips. She blinked and sat up, staring at him.  
  
"An attack? How?" She whispered, obviously understanding the quiet component. James shrugged and checked to see how Sirius was doing. Sirius had woken up Jane already, who was giving everyone dirty looks, and was proceeding to wake up Elizabeth. There were no more incidents with people forgetting that they had to be dead quiet, or they really would be dead. No joke. The thing he was really worried about was the no wands thing. Without their wands how could they protect themselves? He would be fine, but how could he protect the whole camp? He was about to do something rash when he remembered that some of the teachers were there, and would be able to repel the attack, hopefully. That at least kept him from running out the door and successfully committing suicide. Then there really would be no hope.  
  
But he did have to go help the teachers. But first they all needed to get out of here. "Guys," He whispered. "We have to get out of here, it's a trap."  
  
"Why are they here?" Lily asked frantically.  
  
"They have to kill me." James said frankly.  
  
"I'm sorry, WHAT?!"  
  
"Shh! They can't hear us! If they do, this cabin will go next." James whispered urgently. That shut all of them up. "Now, if everyone can be quiet, we have to go. Can anyone here do wandless magic?" He glanced hopefully around, but everyone was shaking his or her heads.  
  
"Oh why did they have to take our wands away?" May moaned. "Now we're doomed."  
  
"Ok, looks like I'm going to have to go alone then. The teachers have their wands, I have to go help them."  
  
"What can Iyou/I do to help?" Lily said sharply with a look of contempt on her face. James looked away. "Whatever, try not to kill anyone will you? We go in pairs."  
  
Remus nodded. "Much safer, I agree. We go with our partners the director gave us."  
  
"No way. I'm going alone." James snapped.  
  
"Sorry James. You have to have a partner to, to watch each others backs."  
  
"I can protect myself you know, a hell of a lot better than Ishe/I can."  
  
"You're going with Lily. Whether you need it or not, we are going in partners." Sirius snapped. "We aren't going to let you go and get yourself killed.  
  
James bit his lip. "Whatever, but if she can't keep up, I'm leaving her. What I have to do is kind of important."  
  
"Fine." Remus said. At Lily's protests he looked sharply at her. "You'll just have to keep up Lily." Lily sighed in defeat and settled for glaring at whoever was closest, unfortunately, that person was James.  
  
"If you're all ready, we have to go." James said. He grabbed Lily's arm and pulled her along with him. I'll go first, then Peter and Jane, followed by Remus and Elizabeth, Sirius, you and May are last." He pulled the door open and slipped out, Lily in his wake. It was a clear night, and would be quite dark if it wasn't for the flames licking the sky. Three of the cabins were on fire, the Slytherin sixth years, the Ravenclaw seventh years, and the Gryffindor fifth years. The others were soon right behind him. "We have to split up, lets go."  
  
"Something's about to happen." James whispered. "RUN!" Peter, Sirius, May, Jane, Remus, and Elizabeth dove into the bushes beside their cabin, but James pulled Lily further away.  
  
A flaming ball soared over their heads and crashed into the cabin they had been in only five minutes ago. There was silence for a second or two, then an explosion threw Lily and James back a few feet.  
  
Flames had engulfed their cabin, and the bushes right next to it. 


	7. Incredible

**Title:** ME: Trapt

**Author:** Seadragon

**Genre:** Action/Adventure/Drama/Humor

**Rating: **Pg-13

**Summary: **Hogwarts 5th years and up are off to a Muggle Camp. A Death Eater attack finds Lily and James lost in the woods, with no way to get back, and an army searching for them. Some people will stop at nothing to get what they want. Voldemort is no exception.

- - - - -

**Chapter Seven:** _Incredible_

- - - - -

"Oh my god, oh my god." Lily whimpered, staring at the flaming bushes.

"Come on, we have to go!"

"But-" Lily protested, still not tearing her eyes of the bushes next to their burning cabin.

"Before they come to check if they got us! We have to go!" James demanded.

"Aren't you worried?! I was right about you! You're just a heartless ass!"

"Lily. We have to go now. I can leave you here if you like, but _I have to go_."

"What?! Are you afraid they'll kill you next?!" Lily screamed at him, finally venting all her frustrations about him from the past six years. "Want to run? Hide? You never were brave! You just attack people from the shadows where they can't see you!"

"No! Because if they find us, they _will_ kill us! And if I die…"

Somehow, this didn't exactly comfort Lily like he had hoped. She kept raging at him, the Death Eaters, the teachers, just- _everything_.

"Lily! We have to get out of here, NOW!" He could hear the sounds of people approaching slowly, in the light of the flames, he could see the shadows of about ten Death Eaters, wands out stretched, coming closer and closer to the burning cabin. Despite what he had told Remus, he couldn't just leave her behind to be discovered and killed by the Death Eaters. He grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet.

Watching the shadows carefully, James backed slowly towards the path that would lead them to the teachers' cabins.

"Where are we going?" Lily whispered quietly, following him reluctantly.

"To help the teachers."

As soon as James felt his feet hit the hard packed dirt of the path, he spun around and ran, Lily's hand still in his. They made considerably good time, what with it being pitch black, and one of them not _really_ trying to keep up.

After a couple of minutes, James got fed up. He stopped dead. "Evans, do you not get it? Everyone is going to die if you don't hurry up!" Lily turned her face away from him stubbornly.

"What can _we_ do to help?!"

"Not we," James muttered. "_Me_."

Lily didn't hear him, so he just tugged on her arm and continued down the path, slower this time, due to the fact that they were almost at the end, and he didn't want to be caught unawares by Death Eaters.

"_Lumos_."

"Umm, Potter."

"What?!" James snapped, concentrating on the dark opening of the path.

"You know you don't have a wand right?"

James nodded sharply, and a clear blue flame erupted on his palm. Lily paused as if paralyzed. "How the hell did that happen?!"

"Quiet!" James hissed, and the ball of light floated ahead and illuminated the opening of the path.

Lily stared at him, dumbstruck. "Merlin…" She whispered.

Slowly, James followed the light with his eyes, and closed his eyes in defeat. "Damn."

"Yes, Mr. Potter. It seems we have found you."

A black robed figure stood between them and the teachers' cabin. The soft glow of James's magic fire discerned him from the shadows, where he had hidden just moments before.

Lily looked at the Death Eater, terrified. "And who is this?" The man asked slowly, watching Lily.

"Lily," James whispered. Or, at least she thought he did, it didn't seem that the Death Eater heard it, and his lips weren't moving. Just to check something, Lily put her hands over her ears. The voice was still there. She removed them and stared at James again. "Close your eyes Lily, turn around. Don't watch this."

Too shocked to do anything but listen, Lily complied.

She heard a hissed voice, so quiet she could barely make out the words. When she did, her eyes snapped open in shock. A flash of green light temporarily blinded her.

"_Avada__ Kedavra_."

She spun around and stared wide eyed at the Death Eater, crumpled on the dirt path. James had expanded the blue light, and it fanned out to show flames reaching to the sky, and black shadowy figures moving slowly towards them.

James saw them, and seeing Lily, grabbed her hand, and pulled her back down the path they had just come from. This time though, he pulled her off the path and into the shadowy woods around it.

Without a word, the trees between them and the Death Eaters burst into flame. But it wasn't a normal fire. It didn't spread any further than the original trees it had hit, and was, like the search light, a clear blue color.

At that, James yanked on Lily's arm and they plunged deeper into the forest.


	8. Irrational

**Title:** ME: Trapt

**Author:** Seadragon

**Genre:** Action/Adventure/Drama/Humor

**Rating: **Pg-13

**Summary: **Hogwarts 5th years and up are off to a Muggle Camp. A Death Eater attack finds Lily and James lost in the woods, with no way to get back, and an army searching for them. Some people will stop at nothing to get what they want. Voldemort is no exception.

- - - - -

**AN:** Alright. I have decided. Any one who has read _The Last Stand_ [well, the first chapter anyway] must have realized that it is set in the same AU I have created for this story. I have had a lot of trouble deciding what to do, because, as you know, this story is part of _The Never Ending Story_. TLS, once named _Miss Me?_ was also a part of that series, but I yanked it out, and made it a stand alone. Then I was confronted with the dilemma of _what _I was going to do with this, namely, _Trapt_, a story that, despite its lack of chapters, was started in July 2003. Now, I love this story, so I couldn't yank it, and just leave it out. But, it is a part of the series, and is mentioned several times. AND, it is the prequel to TLS, which is a stand alone, sort of. But now I have decided. It will be both. It will ride under its own banner, not under TNES, but it will remain a part of it. It will run in cannon to TLS. Please, anyone who has not read The Last Stand, and is reading this, I suggest you read that, and vice versa, they, though set years apart, are in the same AU.

Thank you, that shall be all.

Seadragon.

- - - - -

**Chapter Eight:** _Irrational_

- - - - -

James had eyes only for the forest right in front of them, the part that was illuminated by magic blue light he had created earlier. The surrounding area was dark and foreboding. The shadows crept up behind them as soon as the light moved ahead. He just kept watching straight ahead, almost looking for something, though Lily knew that wasn't possible. They were in the middle of a forest in the middle of the night, running away from people out to kill him, with no idea what so ever where they were going, and what they were going to do when they got there.

Lily, however, kept looking back over her shoulder, into the dark forest around them. Every once and a while her eyes would flicker back to James, and she would just stare at him. It wasn't out of admiration, or lust, but fear. Fear of what could happen if she turned her back. Fear for the powers that lay lurking far beneath his skin.

She had never seen anyone who could do the things he did, almost carelessly. It seemed like he wasn't even aware of it at times. She, for one, had never guessed there was something off kilter about James Potter, at least, nothing like _this_. She watched as his eyes seemed to seek out something in the darkness, what, she didn't know.

At last, she just had to ask.

"How did you do that?" She had been about to add Potter, but it just didn't seem right. He had just saved her life after all. Though, she couldn't quite call him James, that seemed like she was encroaching on territory held by his friends, of whom she was not one. She just settled for not addressing him by a name for the time being, at least until his saving her life wore off.

The way his head snapped towards her, in an almost startled motion, led her to believe that he had forgotten she was here, despite the way her hand was tightly clenched in his. She almost felt sorry for asking, when she saw the haunted look in his eyes. It reminded her of the expression on his face on the bus, when he had been fighting Wolset. She remembered what he had said to the other boy.

Quietly, almost timidly, she added, "I didn't know your parents are dead. I'm sorry." It seemed like the right thing to say, she couldn't say why. She truly was sorry after all, no one deserved to be orphaned at the age of sixteen.

"Why? What could you have done to save them? He had to kill them so he could have a free shot at me."

Lily winced.

"It's true. He's trying to kill me, and he has been for sixteen years. I've gotten used to it by now."

Lily fell silent again and stared at the ground in front of her feet. There wasn't much you could say in response to such a thing. She had met his father, the late Mr. Potter, even if just briefly. When she and May had gone to Diagon Alley together, May had dragged her off to find him, as he had been a famous Dark Wizard killer, an Auror. He had seemed like a very nice man, and a good father.

"And in response to your earlier question, I just can." He answered shortly, nearly snapping at her.

Lily bit her lip. Normally, she would have snapped right back at him, or yelled at him, but this was different. She couldn't exactly scream at him for being upset, they were trying to kill him, after all. Though, considering what she had seen, she didn't think they would be successful. And hadn't he said they had been trying for sixteen years? She shivered. It must be an awful feeling, to know that you are being hunted for something you can't control.

"We have to find somewhere to hide. We can't stay out in the open." James said, a couple minutes later. Lily nodded. She didn't like the prospect of sleeping in the forest, with Death Eaters chasing them down and all. It didn't exactly seem too enjoyable to her.

"Where, exactly?" Lily asked. Later she realized how accusatory it sounded.

"I don't know! Why don't you do something for a change?! _I_ got everyone out of the cabin! _I_ saved your ass from being burnt! _I _got you away from the army of Death Eaters! Why don't you do something for me?!" He had stopped and let go of her hand. They stood facing each other with identical looks of mixed anger and frustration on their faces.

"You may have saved me, but what about your _friends_?! They, for all we know, could be dead!" Lily took a deep breath. "Are they even your friends? Or did you just frighten them into pretending to be?! You don't seem to care about them very much!"

James just stared at her for a second and turned around to walk away.

"You aren't going anywhere! You got me here, and you'll get me out of here!" Lily shrieked.

"I saved your god damn life!" James whirled around to glare at her. Guiltily, she noticed the tear tracks on his cheeks. She brushed it aside. "They would have _killed_ you!"

That too, she brushed aside. "No they wouldn't have, they want you, not me, they would just leave me alone."

At that, James stepped for and grabbed her shoulders. He shook her furiously. "Do you even know who Voldemort is? He doesn't care _who_ you are, he'll kill you. That's what they _do_, they kill innocent people, just for the hell of it! And don't _even_ try to say you could have gotten away yourself. You don't have your wand, you've never _really_ been a duel. Your _life_ has never been on the line. You've _never_ had to watch what you do, be careful who you talk to, for fear they will be _killed_. You don't know what it's like!"

"You aren't so important." Lily snapped. She regretted it immediately.

A perfect circle, with them as its center, suddenly burst in flame. Silver flames, at least ten feet high, surrounded them. They didn't give off any heat at all, just light. The grass beneath her feet exploded upwards in rapid growth. The delicate green tendrils would around her legs with unnatural strength. Trees all around them fell, adding a ring around the barrier of fire.

"No?" James said slowly. "Am I not?"

"Stop it! Stop!" The grass had completely anchored her legs to the ground, and was working up to her arms. Lily watched it nervously, jumping as the flames disappeared. The trees returned to their original positions, before James had tampered with them. Slowly, the grass unwound itself from her, and shrunk back into the ground.

"Are we in agreement that I can do whatever I want, and that you can do nothing to stop me? Including leave you here?"

Lily stared at him with wide eyes. She didn't doubt he would leave her. And if he did, well, the likelihood of her ever returning to the camp was zero to none. She prayed he wouldn't, looking at her feet awkwardly, fists clenched tightly.

"No, I won't."

Her head snapped up and she looked at him. He smiled slightly and tapped his head with one finger. "If you don't want me to know it, don't think it when I'm around you."

He was really scaring her now.

He sighed. "Come on. We still have to find some where to hide." He started walking and Lily stared at his retreating back for minute before running after him. He didn't _seem_ to notice she hadn't been there immediately, nor did he acknowledge the fact that she had nearly run right into him, before slowing down to a walk. But if his little display earlier told her anything, he was just blocking himself off, he knew exactly what was going on all around him.

Lily walked a step or two behind him, watching her feet so that she wouldn't trip on a protruding root. Every once and a while she would take a miss step and slip, or stub her toe, but James remained silent, focusing only on what was right in front of his face. She knew he could tell what was going on, but had just decided to ignore her.

Slowly, Lily felt her eyes move up until she was staring at his back. He was wearing a faded black muggle t-shirt. It was ripped in places from the branches when they had run into the first from the Death Eaters. One rip, from his left shoulder to the middle of his back caught her attention. Through the hole in his shirt, she could see an angry looking red scar. Transfixed, she wondered where it had come from. It certainly wasn't new, because it looked healed, just sore.

As though he had felt her eyes on him, he spoke. "It's nothing." His voice wasn't angry like before, just weary, like he had the weight of the world on his back. Which, she concluded, in a way, he did. Embarrassed about being caught in the act, she blushed. Feeling abashed, Lily focused her eyes on the ground again, pretending to be interested in a strangely shaped root. He sighed and continued navigating through the trees. Did he know where he was going? She wondered, not for the first time. After before, she wouldn't exactly be surprised.

She felt bad for making him cry before. She hadn't intended to do so. She had _never_ seen James Potter cry before, but everyone had a limit, and, she supposed, she had crossed his. She had been kind of out of line with what she had said, but, again, she wondered why he didn't seem to care. To afraid to ask him, or even think too much about it, she pushed it aside for more consideration later, like once they found somewhere to hide.

Instead, she looked at all the different kinds of plant life as they walked through the woods. Some of it she had never seen before, though that wasn't really surprising. Unlike James and his friends, she had never found it necessary to go wandering around in the Forbidden Forest, though, she had to wonder if there would be much _normal_ plant life in there. It was probably full of all sorts of dangerous plants, like bushes that tried to swallow you whole and the like, after all, it wasn't _forbidden_ for nothing.

Lily decided she must have lost her mind. Here she was, wandering around a muggle forest, with _James Potter_, no less, and thinking about killer plant life. She had really slipped. Though, what else could she do? She was, as before mentioned, wandering around a muggle forest, with a boy she hated, being chased by people who wanted to kill them. It wasn't exactly a window of opportunity.

They continued walking in silence. But, try as she might, she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something, or someone, out there, looking for them. No, not them, _him_.


	9. Improbable

**Title:** ME: Trapt

**Author:** Seadragon

**Genre:** Action/Adventure/Drama/Humor

**Rating: **Pg-13

**Summary: **Hogwarts 5th years and up are off to a Muggle Camp. A Death Eater attack finds Lily and James lost in the woods, with no way to get back, and an army searching for them. Some people will stop at nothing to get what they want. Voldemort is no exception.

- - - - -

**AN:** Again, just want to let you know, _The Last Stand_ is set in the same AU, 20 years later! (They are 15/16 in this and 35/36 in TLS) You might want to read that after you read this, but you don't have to. Er, remember, anyone who wants to yell at me for ruining the "mood" of the story, I need to incorporate some sort of messed up humor, like there was in chapters One to Five. Which, I will be editing shortly. I will keep the humor to a minimum though. Actually, it's less humor, more… Er, I don't really know _what_ to call it. Anyway, in case you hadn't noticed, I'm updating on a rotary cycle. So, till next time…

That shall be all.

_Seadragon_.

- - - - -

**Chapter Nine:** _Improbable_

- - - - -

Not much had happened in the past hour to Lily and James. They were still lost in the forest, which was getting increasingly darker the further in they went. They were still running away from an army of people who would have no hesitation in killing them. 

And Lily was still getting understandably worried about the condition of her sanity.

She had just spent the last hour thinking about killer plants, and staring at James Potter's back. To top it all off, it was pitch black, and they had no idea where in the name of Merlin they were going.

But James didn't appear to be too worried about that.

He was staring intently ahead of them, his eyes straining. He muttered something unintelligible and again, a clear blue light burst into being on the flat of his palm. It leapt from his hand and erupted into a wall of light.

It showed a clearing, and a broken down hut.

Both had been invisible to Lily in the darkness. She didn't know how James had seen them, or how he had made the light. But now, she wasn't so sure she wanted to know, not after his display earlier that night, well, she supposed it was morning now. She wasn't going to bother asking him, because if he wanted to tell her, he would have by now. They had had plenty of time, as they had been wandering around the forest like chickens with their heads cut off for about two hours in total now.

She stared at the hut like it was heaven on Earth. Actually, it was pretty close for two people who hated each other, who were wandering around in a pitch black forest, _in the middle of the night_. Lily let out a strangled cry of relief and bolted for the wooden hut.

Or at least she tried to.

As she leapt into the clearing, invisible ropes latched firmly onto her and held her back, as well as raising her upwards. She hung in midair, simply hovering there, bound. She tried to break out of the bonds, but they held her tighter than reinforced steel could have. She let her limbs hang limply, and settled for glaring at the raven haired boy below her.

But he wasn't so much a boy as he was a monster.

Lily had given up trying to stay calm around him. She just couldn't. This boy, monster, whatever he was, he just came, and he conquered. There was no battle. There was no struggle. There was just him, through the clouds of the confusion, he would just appear. And then it was all over. You couldn't stand against him.

There wasn't any obvious effort on his part. Things just _were_. If he willed it, so it would be. And that scared her. It wasn't _right_. But, now was not the time to debate that. Now was the time to scream bloody murder until he let her go. Go where? She didn't know, but she just knew she wanted to get away from this _monster_.

And that was what he truly was, a _monster_. He ceased to be human when he exercised his superior powers. He ceased to be James Potter, the boy everyone wanted to be, or be with. He ceased to be everything at all, he just was.

And she wanted to be as far from that as possible.

Though, right now, nothing of the sort was likely. It was more likely that she was going to be stuck in that grungy little hut with James Potter, source of her fears, for quite a while. And that wasn't something she was going to enjoy one bit, especially if he didn't let her down, and soon.

Luckily for her though, the monster in question was too busy examining the clearing and the hut with his magic to be hearing what she was thinking. Because, if he had, Lily would be a lot more that uncomfortable.

Slowly, the invisible ropes lowered her to the ground, but they weren't ready to release her quite yet. Trying to scream at James, she realized she couldn't make _any_ noise. She turned to him and glared. If looks could kill, he might just be a puddle of flesh colored jelly. Though, then again, he wasn't natural, so his reactions wouldn't be either.

As he inspected the hut, Lily found her eyes straying to the scars on his back. She thought he was too deeply immersed in what he was doing at the moment to know she was watching him, but, again, she thought wrong.

"Stop it."

His voice was cool and clipped, very assertive. When had that happened? Just yesterday he had been a fun loving, extremely devious, teenager, with a life as normal as you could get as a wizard, or so they had thought. In retrospect, Lily thought, no one ever _really_ knew him. No one, except for the Marauders, of course, but that was a given. James Potter had been a mystery man, and he still was, just less of a man in the eyes of those who knew him for who he really was. Now? Now, he was a machine.

Despite his dramatic personality change, he still looked like himself, sans the scars all over his body, now visible to her eye, despite what _Mister Potter_ wanted. But suddenly, that too changed.

Before her very eyes, the scars melted into normal, unmarred skin, invisible again. It was as though they no longer existed.

Lily tore her eyes away from James and focused on something else. Such as how she was going to get out of her current predicament, A.K.A, stuck in one position, with no means of communication, as she had been Silenced. It was going to be difficult, but it kept her mind off of other things, or people, something that would be greatly appreciated.

Unfortunately, we can't have everything.

Or, in Lily's case, we can't have _anything_. But you can see how she would think this, she was lost in the woods, with someone she hated, who was being hunted by the most feared being in the entire world, and was becoming increasingly more terrifying, _and she was being tied up like some criminal_! Not the grounds for a happy person. So, you can understand her frustration when she couldn't get the frightening raven-haired _being_ out of her head.

Again, she should be _very _thankful he wasn't paying her any attention. It wouldn't end well for her at all.

Finally, after Lily thought she would go mad trying to think of something else to think of, although, it had only been about five minutes, he let her go. What irked her most though, was the fact that he didn't even offer some sort of explanation. He just walked into the hut. Normally, she would have engaged him in a screaming match, but after the last two days, she wasn't so sure that would be such a good idea. Especially with her well being in mind. Because it certainly wouldn't be on his as he did what ever he felt like to her. Foremost being tying her up outside again.

Instead, she followed him inside and took a look around. It didn't take long. All in all, the hut was about 20 feet in diameter, with a dirt floor and two windows. On the wall farthest from the door, there was a couch. Across from the couch was an empty fireplace. Below one of the windows was a chair. And that was about it. Thankfully, the door and windows closed and locked easily. Lily didn't enjoy the idea of sleeping in the middle of the forest in a hut that didn't have any way of barring unwanted entry in the middle of the night.

She leaned against a wall and closed her eyes for a minute.

When she opened them again, the hut was _definitely_ different. For one, the floor wasn't dirt anymore, it was a light green carpet. And the wall weren't brown, untouched wood, they were a forest green. The door and the window trim were white. The couch was beige, as was the chair.

It was a distinct improvement. She didn't much like dirt floors, for understandable reasons. Such as, they were, well, _dirt_. But no matter, because it certainly wasn't dirt anymore. Moved away from her position on the wall and sat down on the couch. James took the chair.

As she settled back on the couch, the room became considerable warmer.

After everything that had happened that night, day, morning, whatever it was now, the little things terrified her. So, when she realized the room was rapidly heating up, she leapt off the couch and spun in a circle. Once she had calmed down enough to realize what she was seeing, she was considerably embarrassed.

In the fire, dancing silver flames gave off a comforting heat. She sat back down sheepishly and settled for staring at her feet. All in all, things hadn't been going to well for her recently. And now, things were about to get a whole lot worse.

"So…"

A feeble attempt to start a conversation, she knew, but she had to try. Sitting her in the silence was not making her anymore comfortable. And somewhere out there an _army_ was hunting them. She didn't even know if they would be able to fight them when they came, or if they would just be annihilated. She knew James could handle himself against ten or twenty Death Eaters by himself, but hundreds? She wasn't so sure.

"I can handle it." His voice was sharp and unforgiving. Somehow, she couldn't blame him. If she had to carry all of this, she would have broken by now. But breaking wasn't always something to be ashamed of. You had to pick your battles. But that probably wasn't something he had ever had to do. He had probably never been broken.

And, for the sake of the world, she hoped he never would.

The stony silence was resumed and Lily found herself wishing for the old times, of not so long ago. Even screaming and shouting was better than this. But it wasn't the old times. This was new, all new. And screaming and yelling just didn't have a part of it. They were trivial matters, and this was anything but.

She remembered all the tears shed over those arguments. All the anger, and the hate, behind the words they said. The pain they inflicted, and the rifts they caused. But how she longed for those things now. They brought along the semblance of peace.

It was ironic to think that fighting brought the closest thing to peace they could ever have. It brought the belief that everything was alright in the world out side of their petty arguments. But it wasn't, nothing was really alright. There were children without mothers, without fathers, without siblings, without _family_. There were children who had nowhere safe to go. There were children who were plagued with endless nightmares. There were children whose only relief was to bring unconditional pain to others.

And somehow, James Potter fell into all of those categories.

And somehow, that might not ever change. The next generation might grow up under the banner of fear, just as they had. They hadn't had the choice to be young and innocent, they were going to be thrust into adulthood before they were ready. But there was no choice. To survive that had to happen. They had just been born into a dangerous time, where if you didn't fight, you didn't survive. If you did not run, you could not hide. Despite what she had said earlier, she knew Voldemort didn't care. She knew it didn't matter who you were, why you were, or what you were. It just mattered that you were. _That you existed_.

And if you existed, that must be changed.


	10. Incapable

**Title:** ME: Trapt

**Author:** Seadragon

**Genre:** Action/Adventure/Drama/Humor

**Rating: **Pg-13

**Summary: **Hogwarts 5th years and up are off to a Muggle Camp. A Death Eater attack finds Lily and James lost in the woods, with no way to get back, and an army searching for them. Some people will stop at nothing to get what they want. Voldemort is no exception.

- - - - -

**Author's Note: **Hey again, all. Sorry it took me so long to update, but as you probably know, I have a baker's dozen of stories to update, and I try to get them all updated frequently, but sometimes circumstances are not allowing. Anyway, I just wanted to let everyone know where this story stands.

- They are 15/16 depending on who [James is 15, Sirius is 15, Remus is 16, Peter is 16, Lily is 15, May is 16, Jane is 16, and Elizabeth is 16]

- None of them have wands

- Other cabins were under siege as well, as they didn't know whose cabin was whose

- The teachers present are McGonagall [Transfiguration], Flitwick [Charms], Hooch [Flying/Referee], Sprout [Herbology], and Austere [Potions]

- The teachers were sharing a cabin

- There are muggles at the camp

- Some muggle cabins were also under attack

- - - - -

**Chapter Ten:** _Incapable_

- - - - -

"Shit!"

Sirius Black leapt from his hiding place in what used to be a cluster of bushes. Now, well, they weren't so much bushes as they were piles of ash. Giving the ex-bushes a dirty look, he climbed to his feet and inspected his surroundings. Well, what was left of his surroundings anyway. And that really wasn't all that much.

He brushed leaves, dirt, and ash off his clothes as he walked towards the shell of their cabin. And that's all that was left of it, a shell. There were flames licking at the wooden exterior, one corner and the roof had exploded. All there was left on the inside was a layer of gray soot.

Sirius made a face as he approached the doorway. The door itself was gone, probably burnt to a crisp. As he ran a hand along the frame, collecting ash on his fingertips, he wondered absentmindedly where everyone else was, and why everything seemed so unearthly silent.

And then sounds exploded from everywhere. He was dimly aware of people pushing through foliage underneath the cover of screams of pain and anguish. He moved to grab his wand, but clutched only a handful of ash that had found its way into his pocket. Their wands were back at the castle.

He looked around desperately for anything that could be used as a weapon. His eyes fell upon a long branch at the base of the woods. He darted forward frantically and grabbed it before leaping backwards from the trees. For once, it seemed like a better idea to be out in the open.

Against the flames still burning in the cabin and on the tops of trees, he could see the shadows of people coming towards him. He waited moving back towards the cabin, so they at least couldn't jump him from behind.

When the closest shadow came into the open, he closed his eyes and swung the branch, successfully cracking the person in the head. They dropped like a stone.

"Sirius Black! What the hell do you think you are doing?!"

Sirius spun around with a startled look on his face, he dropped the branch, wincing in pain as it bounced off his feet.

"Well I suppose it's an improvement from her complaining every five seconds." May Dawson said thoughtfully, nudging the still form of Elizabeth Harmon with one foot. Jane Litton was standing behind May with a frightened look frozen on her face.

Well, I say frozen, but it vanished pretty fast when she snapped back to reality and realized her best, actually, only, friend was currently crumpled on the ground after a blow to the head by a branch.

"You." She hissed, glaring at Sirius with a look of disgust on her face. Sirius watched with amusement, but was quickly distracted from her by the arrival of two others.

"Moony! Wormtail!" He cried, seeing the latter supporting the former as they made their way into the clearing in front of what used to be their cabin. Remus's face was twisted into a look of pain, but it broke into a grin when he saw Sirius, alive and well.

"Hey Padfoot." Remus said, his voice forcedly cheerful. He winced a bit as Peter helped him to sit down and lean against a tree, as of yet untouched by fire.

Sirius sighed with relief, they were all accounted for. Or were they? He looked around again, his vision slightly clouded with pain and counted all that were present. May, Jane, and Elizabeth, that's three. Remus and Peter, four and five respectively. And himself. Six.

Oh Merlin.

"Where's James?!" He said frantically, turning to the other five, his heart sinking further and further as they all shook their heads.

"He went the other direction with Lily, Sirius. They didn't hide in the bushes with us, remember?" May said quietly, walking over to him and putting a hand on his upper arm.

Sirius tore away from her, picked up his branch again, and started towards the path opening with determination.

May tried and failed to stop him. He had nearly disappeared into the woods when Remus spoke up.

"Stop." His voice was raspy, probably from the same pain that was plaguing Sirius.

Sirius paused in his tracks, but didn't turn to look at Remus, the only clue as to the fact that he was listening was the absence of his footsteps.

"You know why they're here. Just like I do, just like Peter does. You go after them, you'll get swept up in it, and killed." Remus, always the voice of reason, never begging or pleading, was doing just that. "Please, Sirius?"

Reluctantly, the raven-haired boy dropped the branch, and turned around.

May, Jane, and Elizabeth, who had regained consciousness just in time for Remus's speech, were staring at the three boys with confusion. It was silent for a few minutes, when finally, May spoke up in a small voice.

"Why are they here?"

It was Remus who finally lifted his head to answer May's question. It wasn't an answer up to his usual standards, but it got the job done, and there certainly was the wonderful shock value that came along with it.

"Lord Voldemort has to kill James."

May looked at him for a second, then blinked.

"Wonderful." She murmured. "My best friend is who knows where with a guy wanted by a mass murderer. The day really isn't looking up."


End file.
